The present invention relates generally to a method of manufacturing a polymeric article with modified surface properties in one step. The manufactured polymeric article and the formulation for manufacturing the polymeric article are also encompassed.
Most polymer surface modification protocols are performed in back-end operations, i.e. after the polymer article is manufactured using plasma processing and/or chemical reactions. However, these methods suffer from limited reliability, lifetime or spatial control, and greatly increase the complexity and cost of polymeric device production. Two solutions for integrating surface modifications during device manufacturing are surface topography micro- or nano-structuring and addition of a modifier to the primary polymeric material formulation. The former suffers from lack of robustness over time, i.e. fouling of the surface nanostructures, or from complex manufacturing processes; and the latter failed so far to offer spatial control, i.e. patterning of the surface properties.
US 2009/096136 discloses a method for the micro-scale and nano-scale imprinting lithography of thiol-ene polymer using PDMS or thiol-ene molds. There are no surface-active components involved in the formulation of the polymeric material.
WO 2013/167576 discloses a method and formulation for the manufacturing of coated articles and composite, using thiol-ene-epoxy polymer, and WO 2012/042059 discloses a method for the manufacture of thiol-ene polymer articles.
WO 2008/137209 concerns the usage of a nanostructured chemical for a polymer for improving the mechanical properties of the polymer, but also for modifying its surface topography and wettability, and in which the nanostructured chemical, contribute to a number of bulk and surface properties. It is disclosed that the nanostructured chemical is selectively compounded into the polymer such that the nanostructured chemical is incorporated into a predetermined region within the polymer.
U.S. Ser. No. 13/734,446: discloses a liquid-repellent polymer coating method, in which a mixture of a polymer and of a liquid repelling material is used. There is no mention of specific interaction between the liquid repelling material and the polymer or any master surface.
WO 2014/025548: Discloses a method to prevent biofouling using a copolymer coating comprising a fluorinated compound.
US 2013/0295327: Discloses a method for the manufacturing of super-hydrophobic film, using a polymer with hierarchical micro- and nano-structures in a silicon polymer.
WO 2012/064745 discloses a method for the manufacturing of super-hydrophobic and oleophobic article with re-entrant structures at least partially covered with a perfluoroalkane and/or micro- or nano-particles.
WO 2009/009185: Discloses manufacturing of super-hydrophobic fabric using fluorinated silsesquioxanes nanoparticle in a polymer coating.
Wang J J, Muck A A Jr, Chatrathi M P M, Chen G G, Mittal N N, Spillman S D S, et al. Bulk modification of polymeric microfluidic devices. Lab Chip. 2005 Jan. 31;5(2):226-30 discloses bulk modification of the surface properties, more specifically the electroosmotic mobility, of a polymer using a judicious addition of a modifier to the primary monomer solution.
Xiao Y Y, Yu X-DX, Xu J-JJ, Chen H-YH. Bulk modification of PDMS microchips by an amphiphilic copolymer. Electrophoresis. 2007 Aug. 31;28(18):3302-7. In this work, a PDMS polymer with an amphiphilic copolymer, added as an additive substance, was employed to modify PDMS microchips during the fabrication process.
Tuteja A, Choi W, Ma M, Mabry J M, Mazzella S A, Rutledge G C, et al. Designing superoleophobic surfaces. Science. American Association for the Advancement of Science; 2007 Dec. 6;318(5856):1618-22. In this work, fluorodecylPOSS is added to PMMA polymer and is shown to undergo a substantial surface migration of POSS toward the surface during solvent evaporation.
Yilgor I, Bilgin S, Isik M, Yilgor E. Facile preparation of super-hydrophobic polymer surfaces. Polymer (Guildf). 2012 Mar. 8;53(6):1180-8. Discloses a process for the manufacturing of super-hydrophobic polymer surfaces, but the process is not a single step process.
Lee, in Colloids and Surfaces B, 111 (2013), 313-320 discloses selectively hydrophobizing a microwell-patterned hydrophilic polymer substrate.
Mongkhontreerat et al, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 1(2013), 13732 discloses a methodology for the construction of functional 3D networks with tunable properties with thiol-ene chemistry.
The inventors have published and presented the invention at Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS), 2014 IEEE 27th International Conference. Pardon, G.; Haraldsson, T.; van der Wijngaart, W., “Surface energy micropattern inheritance from mold to replica,” Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS), 2014 IEEE 27th International Conference, pp. 96-99, 26-30 Jan. 2014.
In view of the prior art there is a need to provide a simpler and easier method for performing a modification of the surface properties of a polymer article.